Means for controlling doors and steps of cars.



E. L. RODERCK & L. T. MoGUTG'BE-N. MEANS FOR GONTROLLING .Doos AND STEPS o? CARS.

Patellld Mai. 25, im@

2 SHEETS-amm 1.

E. L. Mmmm L. T. MUGHTGHEQN. MEANS FOR GON'IROLLINQDOORS AND STEPS 0F GARS.

APLIGATION FLBD JAEHM, 1913.

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UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEioE.

HARRY L. RODERCK, 0F OROVILLE, AND I.AB.A1\T1\TA".l..I McCUTCHEON, OF SANTA CRUZ,

MEANS FOR CONTROLLING DOORS AND STEPS 0F CARS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 25, 1913,'

Application tiled January 14, 1913. Serial No. 742,048.

T o all whom t may concern Be it known that we, HARRY L. ROBER- ioir and LABANNA T. MCCUTCHEON, citizens of the United States, residing, respectively, at Oroville, in the county of Butte, and Santa Cruz, in the county of Santa Cruz, State of California, have invented new and usefulI Improvements' in Means for Controlling Doors and Steps of Cars, of which the following is aY specication.

Our invention relates to improvements in the means for opening the doors and for projecting the steps of railwaycars, and the object of our invention is to provide means whereby such operations may be controlled by the stoppage andr starting of the car.

In the accompanying drawing, Figure 1 is a side View of a railway car, certain parts not material to our invention being omitted;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged transverse section of avalve and itsl casing; Fig. 3 is an enlarged rear view of controlling meansg'Fig; 4 isy an end viewof the car; Fig. 5 is an enlarged plan view of mechanism for operating the steps and part -of the mechanism for operating the doors.

Referring to the drawing, 1 indicates the body of a railway car. Rotated by one of the wheel. axles 2 of said car is a bevel gear 3 meshing with a bevel gear 4 ona vertical shaft 6, which carries a centrifugal governor 7, connected by a link 8 to the crankv arm 9 of a rotary valve 10 rotatable in la valve cas ing 11. Said valve,.illustrated in section in Fig. 2, is here shown in its vposition when the car is at rest, in whichposition one inletl branch 12 ofa transverse conduit 13 communicates with a port 14 in the valve casing 11 connected by a pipe 16 with a source of compressed air, not here shown. The other inlet branch 17 of said conduit is at this time closed, and the outlet` end of said conduit communicates with a port 18, from which a pipe 19 leads to one end of a cylinder 21. lFrom the other-end of said cylindera plpe 22 leads to a port 23 in the valve casing 11,

which port 23 at this time communicates` l#ith a conduit 24 in said valve, communicat- Lng at the other end with a port 26 .in the valve casing leading to the atmosphere. In

this position of the valve, therefore, the piston in the cylinder 21 is pressed froml left to right. When the car is in motion the centrifugal governor 7 rises, and when the car has obtained a suicient speed, saidl governorhasturned tllevalve 10 through such an angle that, the branch 17 of the conduit 13 communicates with the port 14, while the outer end ofsaid Conduit l13 communicates with the yport 23. Atthe same time the port 18 communicates bymeans of a conduit 27 in the valve with a port 28 in the valve casing `leading to the atmosphere. It will readily be seen that, under these conditions, the left hand end of the cylinder is open to exhaust while the right hand end of the cylinder communicates with the source of supply of compres'sed air` and thepiston in the cylinder moves from right to left. Said pis- .ton is connected to two piston rods 31, 32,

passing through stufling boxes 33 inthe respective ends ofthe cylinder and passing through guides 34 toward the ends of the car. The outer endvof each piston rod is connected (Fig. 5) to a link 36,l which is connected to the outer end of a crank arm 37 secur'd to a sleeve 38 loose on a transverse shaft 39, the ends of whichv are journaled in bearings 41 and connected to arms 42, the outer ends of which are connected to links 43 which are connected to the slidablel doors 44 of the car. Said sleeve is formed with a clutch member 46 which is adapted to engage a clutch member 47 slidably keyed to the transverse shaft 39, and connected to a yoke 48 operated by a lever 49, an 'arm of which is actuated by a spring-repressed stem 51 extending above the floor of the car and n arranged to be depressed by the foot of the conductor or. motorman. Below theI fixed steps 52 at each end of the car are movable .steps 53 slidable yin guideways l54 and connected to links 56, which are connected to the outer ends of arms 57 on a'vertical shaft 58 on which is a loose sleeve 60 having an -arm 59 connected to a link 6l also connected to the 'outer end of the Acorresponding piston rod. Said sleeve 60 is adapted to be engaged by a clutch 62 depressed by a lever 63 `operated by a spring-repressed stem 64.

The mode of operation ofthe apparatus is as follows: When the conductor or motor-1 man wishes to open the doors 44 or to project the step 5 3 upon thearrival of the car at any desired station, he depresses the stem 51 or 64 and thereby brings the corresponding-transverse shaft into operative relatlon with the sleeve. Then, when the car stops,

vthe valve 10 is turned by the governor so that compressed air is admitted tov the proper end of the cylinder to turn both transverse shafts and open the gates 4or project the lower steps. `When the car is again started, if the proper foot stem is depressed, the compressed air ivill operate the piston to move the transverse shaft in the oppositeidirection, and close the gates or With draw the steps.

In combination with al shaft rotated in the movement of a car, a centrifugal governor controlled by said shaft, a lever controlled by said centrifugal governor, a valve controlled by said lever, a source of supply of pressure fluid controlled by said valve, a cylinder into' which said pressure fluid is supplied through said va1ve, piston rods eX- tending toward the opposite ends of the rection to open said doo-rs and project said steps, and when the car is in motion pressure fluid is applied in the opposite direction.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

HARRY L. RoDERioK. LABANNA T. MCoUToHEoN.

lVitnesses FRANCIS M. WRIGHT, D. B. RICHARDS. 

